Product placement doesn't have to be a bad thing. When it's done well you barely even see it's there. Characters in a movie will visit a restaurant and all be craving a Coke, or perhaps you'll be playing a videogame and notice an ad for a particular presidential candidate in the background. It's no big deal, when you think about it. The publishers and developers receive a bit of cash to help offset the cost of development, and the advertisers get a new method of tapping into the part of your subconscious that tells you to buy, vote and eat things.

All of this said, product placement can sometimes be eye-rolling. For instance, fans of SimCity can now download the game's first bit of free DLC: a Nissan Leaf electric car charging station. The charging station, apparently designed to be seen from several miles in the air, is branded with a big, bright-red Nissan logo and a matching billboard advertising the "100% Electric Nissan Leaf." To drive home that Nissan's electric car is good, the charging station comes with some nifty in-game benefits.

"Plopping down the Nissan LEAF® Charging Station will add happiness to nearby buildings," said Maxis. "Adding the Charging Station will not take power, water or workers away from your city. Zoom in to the streets of cities and players will start seeing a percentage of their Sims from all wealth classes driving the electric vehicles. The Charging Station produces no garbage or sewage as well making it pollution free."

It kind of makes you want to go buy a Leaf, doesn't it?

In all seriousness, Electronic Arts and Maxis could have done much worse than promote the sale of an electric car. For instance, 2007's SimCity Societies featured product placement from British Petroleum which, ironically, had partnered with EA to try and educate gamers on environmentally friendly alternative energy sources. A few years later, of course, BP would infamously be found to be responsible for the worst accidental oil spill in history.

What's next? McDonald's DLC? Maxis is failing so much as a game developer, and please don't blame it all on EA, Ocean Quigley and his team are equally guilty of supporting and developing broken designs that basically destroyed what could be an excellent game.

Ah, yes, EA (yes, it's Maxis, you annoying guy over there who's gonna point at me and yell "STOP THE EA HATE, IT WAS MAXIS!", but Maxis is fully owned by EA now, so it's their bloody fault like all the other rubbish they've churned out over the past years), selling out like noone else has sold out before.

I guess we should feel lucky that buildings with ridiculous advertising don't just show up automatically. I bet McDonald's would pay a pretty good amount to have Micky D's showing up in your city instead of "Don's Tacos" or whatever.

Yeah, seriously? After everything else they've done, they're adding advertisements as DLC? It may be free, but given the online nature of the game that they've forced on the players I'm guessing it's also mandatory. And come on! It's blatantly overpowered because they wouldn't dare to suggest that the product they're advertising is in anyway bad.

james.sponge:What's next? McDonald's DLC? Maxis is failing so much as a game developer, and please don't blame it all on EA, Ocean Quigley and his team are equally guilty of supporting and developing broken designs that basically destroyed what could be an excellent game.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SPONGE!

I... I'm conflicted. I came into this story ready to spout some rant about how they have been charging consumers to include other business's materials in their game since The Sims 2, but... EA IS GIVING SOMETHING OUT FOR FREE!? AND IT IS SLIGHTLY BENEFICIAL TO THE GAME!? Well it is still advertising (which I'm a firm supporter of as a means of monetary gain) and that in and of itself is, well, controversial to include in a game, but it is both free and optional. Not bad, EA, not bad at all.

oh boy, free stuff! this is totally altruistic and not involved with money whatsoever. i know that when i wrap my presents, i cover them with all of my favorite corporate sponsors. i mean, friends. yes, that.

if this is what's considered a positive change, then ea has won. they've effectively opened the door to self serving behavior that's only slightly better than their previous self serving behavior.

Judging from EA's history and how bad Origin is, i don't think they ever considered releasing this for free. It was just an error on their part and by the time they realised what they had done it was too late to change it.

And for anyone thinking its advertising so it should be free, yeah, that is not how EA works. And there's tons of stuff like this in Sims 3. It seems it is now accepted that the consumer is the one who gives money to get commercials.

The main thing that annoys me is that electricity apparently is farted out a fairy. The whole reason why I feel electric cars are pretty bullshit 'green' technology is that they require power from the grid, which, almost wherever you go is still mostly fossil based.

I can't see why anyone can really complain about this, considering its a) optional, and b) free. Like, its not like they're forcing players to download this (admittedly) blatant piece of advertising. And I must emphasise the 'free' part.

WickedFire:The main thing that annoys me is that electricity apparently is farted out a fairy. The whole reason why I feel electric cars are pretty bullshit 'green' technology is that they require power from the grid, which, almost wherever you go is still mostly fossil based.

I too find it silly when someone in New York or LA thinks they're saving the planet by plugging into their coal-powered city grid... but the hype machine works both ways. Some people actually live in areas powered chiefly by wind, hydroelectric, or even nuclear power plants (also, I assume there are desert communities powered by solar, I just haven't looked any up), while some people sell back to the grid more than they use just by having rooftop solar cells. Personally, I'd like to do such a thing and drive an electric car... but not one built as such, I have a classic I'd like to convert.Also, the little rural grid I'm on is powered entirely by a hydroelectric dam.

All of that said, this DLC is just a grab at hyped-up advertising. Too bad it's not for Tesla motors instead.

I guess Nissan finally finished that car that runs on nothing but bullshit. I ain't talking about bio-fuel made out of bullshit, I mean the stuff that comes out of the mouths of EA pr people.

Fuck this shameless bullshit promotion.

Why not release the Shell Oil Drilling platforms that produce 0 ground pollution! Or how about the Sony Electronics Factory that produces TV's without using resources! Fuck let's go a step further, let's create "enter brand name store" that INSTANTLY increase the density of ANY residence that shops there. I mean if you are going to make bullshit items go all the way with them!

We all know this is why they wanted us online. We just didn't imagine they would literally turn the thing into a "commercial" platform.

You know what I don't like about this? It doesn't take any power, and all wealth classes somehow manage to afford electric vehicles. I don't know anything about SimCity, and nor do I play it, but that is not the way to do product placement. At least pretend the items are actual things in the world that would behave with pros and cons like any other item.

Ah, the Nissan Leaf... a car that totally makes sense, until you need to evacuate your city after a catastrophic hurricane that renders the entire fucking place without electricity for several weeks. Then it's just a useless pile of garbage.

Never thought I'd say this... but I'd take a Volt over a Leaf any day. I'd even take a PRIUS over a Leaf.

I guess Nissan finally finished that car that runs on nothing but bullshit. I ain't talking about bio-fuel made out of bullshit, I mean the stuff that comes out of the mouths of EA pr people.

Fuck this shameless bullshit promotion.

Why not release the Shell Oil Drilling platforms that produce 0 ground pollution! Or how about the Sony Electronics Factory that produces TV's without using resources! Fuck let's go a step further, let's create "enter brand name store" that INSTANTLY increase the density of ANY residence that shops there. I mean if you are going to make bullshit items go all the way with them!

We all know this is why they wanted us online. We just didn't imagine they would literally turn the thing into a "commercial" platform.

Yeah you're definitely right about that. I play SimCity Social on Facebook and that's exactly what it is. Every so often a new "event" is opened up and it's usually some bullshit promotion for some company like Dunkin Donuts, Progressive Insurance, Mercedes, Toyota, or whatever. THAT game is free to play, though, so I can understand.

I feel like anything stronger than that is more knee jerk than genuine criticism.

MeChaNiZ3D:You know what I don't like about this? It doesn't take any power, and all wealth classes somehow manage to afford electric vehicles. I don't know anything about SimCity, and nor do I play it, but that is not the way to do product placement. At least pretend the items are actual things in the world that would behave with pros and cons like any other item.

WickedFire:The main thing that annoys me is that electricity apparently is farted out a fairy. The whole reason why I feel electric cars are pretty bullshit 'green' technology is that they require power from the grid, which, almost wherever you go is still mostly fossil based.

The presumption is those solar cells on the charging stations are using advanced solar technology which eliminates them from the grid.

Not saying it isn't silly but it makes perfect SciFi sense at least. It's not necessarily breaking their logic, what little there is.

I'm too lazy to quote everyone else that didn't see the half dozen solar panels in the image included with this news post. Maybe someone else can?

I feel like anything stronger than that is more knee jerk than genuine criticism.

MeChaNiZ3D:You know what I don't like about this? It doesn't take any power, and all wealth classes somehow manage to afford electric vehicles. I don't know anything about SimCity, and nor do I play it, but that is not the way to do product placement. At least pretend the items are actual things in the world that would behave with pros and cons like any other item.

WickedFire:The main thing that annoys me is that electricity apparently is farted out a fairy. The whole reason why I feel electric cars are pretty bullshit 'green' technology is that they require power from the grid, which, almost wherever you go is still mostly fossil based.

The presumption is those solar cells on the charging stations are using advanced solar technology which eliminates them from the grid.

Not saying it isn't silly but it makes perfect SciFi sense at least. It's not necessarily breaking their logic, what little there is.

I'm too lazy to quote everyone else that didn't see the half dozen solar panels in the image included with this news post. Maybe someone else can?

There is still the 'Happiness' generated by the building. I'm not sure of the happiness value of what amounts to a power station being built next to my house. With a big amount of traffic too. Probably nit-picking, but it does raise an interesting question: